PM Ciolos: Next week I’ll be in Germany for economic meetings; Iohannis, Merkel to meet in coming period

Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos announced that next week he will be paying an economic visit to three German states, pointing out that President Klaus Iohannis will have a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the coming period.

“Next week I shall be in Germany again, this time in three states, for economic meetings. I shall be meeting representatives of German companies which have already invested in Romania, but also which are about to invest. In the states of Bavaria, Baden-Wurttemberg and North Rhine-Westphalia. Therefore, our relation with Germany continues actively, not only on a political level, but also on an economic level,” the Prime Minister pointed out for Radio Romania Actualitati.

Ciolos added that in the coming period President Klaus Iohannis will have a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the information being given in the context in which Romania, together with other Eastern European countries, wants to play a more significant part in the decision-making preparation process.

“This is what we want to do now, with Poland and with other partners, to prepare ideas, not only to participate in these debates, to prepare and table ideas, compromise themes on the main topics discussed on the occasion of the negotiations on UK’s leaving the EU. Most certainly, also discussed will be the future of the European budget, the future of the main European community policies, and we want to come up together with ideas and proposals. Romania will also be a part of this consultation process, including with Germany. Mr President Iohannis keeps contact with Mrs Merkel and they will have a meeting in the coming period. President Hollande is coming to Romania before the European Summit of Bratislava. We shall also have a new discussion with France about these main points on the agenda. I have recently met Poland’s Prime Minister. Therefore we are in the middle of a very dynamic consultation process,” he showed.

Ciolos believes that, in this respect, a great importance is also held by the consultations and discussions taking place in Romania on these topics, even if it is an election year, “in order to have a coherent approach on a European level.”

“This so-called Bucharest-Warsaw axis, which I would like to see more active in the coming years, regardless of who is at rule in Poland or in Romania, isn’t just a counterweight to the old Europe, but wants to be a manner of balancing things out in the EU. I want to be very clear. We do not want by this to deepen the gap between the old Europe and the new Europe, but to find ways through which we can discuss and be part of the decision-making process on a peer basis: those from the east, those from the west, those from the south, those from the north, the older and the newer members alike. I discussed with Chancellor Merkel ever since January, when I paid that visit to Berlin and when she asked me how do I explain this attitude of some political leaders in Eastern Europe in regards to certain decision-making discussion topics on a European Level. I told her that, in my point of view and based on the experience I have, there is a certain amount of frustration in the east that these countries are not actually involved enough in the European decision-making preparation process. She told me that no one prevents us from being an active part of this process, but this entails our being more active, more dynamic,” the Prime Minister added.

In Chisinau, pro-Russian parties said they don’t wish to stop Moldova’s European path

Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos said that during his visit to Chisinau he received signals, including from the pro-Russian parties, that they do not wish to stop the Republic of Moldova’s European path.

“Romania will continue to be a supporter not only of the Republic of Moldova’s European path, but of the democratic and reform path of the Republic of Moldova. This was exactly the goal of my meeting with the opposition parties, to send this message based on arguments: why the Republic of Moldova needs to continue reforms from our point of view. The Republic of Moldova has a pragmatic interest in continuing the connection with the EU. It is not only an interest, a political approach. Of course, now I don’t know how credible these pieces of information can be or not, the opposition parties included – the so-called pro-Russian parties – gave me signals that they do not wish to stop the Republic of Moldova’s European path,” the Romanian Prime Minister told Radio Romania Actualitati on Sunday.

He underscored that the presidential elections in the Republic of Moldova are a process of internal affairs.

“The best way we can help is to show that this closeness to the European Union is one producing results, one producing welfare for the Moldovan citizens, because, if we stay on the level of speeches and political statements from Brussels and from other European capitals, we won’t encourage the citizens of the Republic of Moldova to make this step, which entails certain efforts. Because getting closer to the EU, competitiveness on the European market, in economic terms, the welfare in the Republic of Moldova also entail certain reform efforts which will also benefit the economy of the Republic of Moldova in general. These things are harder to explain, but, if we only come up with constraints and impose certain things, certain reforms, without explaining them and without coming with direct support, too, there may be a recoil of the support from the governments who want to make reform,” he said.

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